Dick Butkus says he knew in fifth grade he would be a professional football player. Butkus was a fierce tackler who took great pride and pleasure in inflicting pain upon his opponents. Now, decades after his last game, he's still remembered as "the Maestro of Mayhem", one of the greatest linebackers ever to play. Butkus began racking up awards in high school, as Associated Press's Prep Player of the Year. At the University of Illinois he was named to the All-American team twice, and with the National Football League's Chicago Bears he played in eight straight Pro Bowls. He's in both the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame. Since 1985, the Dick Butkus Award has honored the best college linebacker each year.

After his playing days ended Butkus turned into an actor, appearing in Mother, Jugs, & Speed and supporting roles in three TV series, Blue Thunder, Half Nelson, and My Two Dads.

He was briefly named head coach of the Chicago Enforcers in the XFL, a new league, in 2000. The announcement sold a lot of tickets in Chicago, Butkus's home town, but he never actually coached a game, instead accepting a "promotion" as the team's "Director of Football Competition". The XFL folded after one season.